Tonight is the opening night for the Forge Theatre’s latest production “Li’l Abner,” a show that is based on the classic cartoon strip of the same name.

There is a strong probability that many of the cast members are unfamiliar with the cartoon strip, mainly because the cartoon stopped running before they were even born.

“Li’l Abner” was a satirical comic strip that was written and drawn by Al Capp and appeared in newspapers around the world. The cartoon featured a fictional clan of hillbillies in Dogpatch (a poor town in the rural hills of Kentucky). It ran for 43 years and concluded its run in November 1977.

“Li’l Abner”, a musical comedy adaptation of the cartoon strip, opened on Broadway in November 1956, enjoyed a long run in New York and went out on a national tour. Featuring music and lyrics by Gene de Paul and Johnny Mercer and book by Norman Panama and Melvin Frank, the play was a 1957 Tony Award winner.

The Forge Theatre, which is located in Phoenixville, will be bringing the classic musical back to life more than 55 years later with a production that will be running on weekends now through December 1.